Last week developer 343 detailed Halo 5’s Forge mode, and earlier today studio head Josh Holmes, shared some additional details regarding the game’s multiplayer mode, including info on the size of the day 1 Multiplayer patch and slayer maps.

A few days ago, 343 detailed the launch playlists. At launch there will be more than 20 multiplayer maps available, and more than 15 additional maps will be added before June 2016. The game’s Forge mode will be added in December of this year. Nice to know is that all of the additional content is free and according to Holmes, 343 has a dedicated live team established for the game, with a sustained plan including new content and features that extends months beyond launch. Throughout the game’s launch on October 27th, 343 will be monitoring the game and community 24-7, to address any unforeseen issues that crop up.

One of the detailed multiplayer playlists, is the playlist for the highly popular Slayer mode. Those who have paid attention, may have noticed that, two really enjoyable maps from the beta aren’t included at launch – Empire & Eden. According to Holmes though, fans shouldn’t despair as these maps will be back at a later date.

9GB Day 1 Multiplayer patch

We already knew that Halo 5 had a large file size – leaked physical copies of the game, mentioned a file size of up to 60GB for the game. Interestingly the Xbox Store mentions a file size of 46.19GB. The difference between the two file sizes might well be explained by a heavy day 1 update, which Holmes confirmed on Twitter to be 9GB. This Day 1 Multiplayer update contains map content according the studio head. A patch that nearly fits on a dual layer DVD is considered quite large. Let’s hope the pre-loading goes live soon.